30 ILCS 500/ Illinois Procurement Code.

(30 ILCS 500/Art. 5 heading) ARTICLE 5 POLICY ORGANIZATION

(30 ILCS 500/5-5)

Sec. 5-5. Procurement Policy Board.

(a) Creation. There is created a Procurement Policy Board, an agency of the State of Illinois.

(b) Authority and duties. The Board shall have the authority and responsibility to review, comment upon, and recommend, consistent with this Code, rules and practices governing the procurement, management, control, and disposal of supplies, services, professional or artistic services, construction, and real property and capital improvement leases procured by the State. The Board shall also have the authority to recommend a program for professional development and provide opportunities for training in procurement practices and policies to chief procurement officers and their staffs in order to ensure that all procurement is conducted in an efficient, professional, and appropriately transparent manner.

Upon a three-fifths vote of its members, the Board may review a contract. Upon a three-fifths vote of its members, the Board may propose procurement rules for consideration by chief procurement officers. These proposals shall be published in each volume of the Procurement Bulletin. Except as otherwise provided by law, the Board shall act upon the vote of a majority of its members who have been appointed and are serving.

(b-5) Reviews, studies, and hearings. The Board may review, study, and hold public hearings concerning the implementation and administration of this Code. Each chief procurement officer, State purchasing officer, procurement compliance monitor, and State agency shall cooperate with the Board, provide information to the Board, and be responsive to the Board in the Board's conduct of its reviews, studies, and hearings.

(c) Members. The Board shall consist of 5 members appointed one each by the 4 legislative leaders and the Governor. Each member shall have demonstrated sufficient business or professional experience in the area of procurement to perform the functions of the Board. No member may be a member of the General Assembly.

(d) Terms. Of the initial appointees, the Governor shall designate one member, as Chairman, to serve a one-year term, the President of the Senate and the Speaker of the House shall each appoint one member to serve 3-year terms, and the Minority Leader of the House and the Minority Leader of the Senate shall each appoint one member to serve 2-year terms. Subsequent terms shall be 4 years. Members may be reappointed for succeeding terms.

(e) Reimbursement. Members shall receive no compensation but shall be reimbursed for any expenses reasonably incurred in the performance of their duties.

(f) Staff support. Upon a three-fifths vote of its members, the Board may employ an executive director. Subject to appropriation, the Board also may employ a reasonable and necessary number of staff persons.

(g) Meetings. Meetings of the Board may be conducted telephonically, electronically, or through the use of other telecommunications. Written minutes of such meetings shall be created and available for public inspection and copying.

(h) Procurement recommendations. Upon a three-fifths vote of its members, the Board may review a proposal, bid, or contract and issue a recommendation to void a contract or reject a proposal or bid based on any violation of this Code or the existence of a conflict of interest as described in subsections (b) and (d) of Section 50-35. A chief procurement officer or State purchasing officer shall notify the Board if an alleged conflict of interest or violation of the Code is identified, discovered, or reasonably suspected to exist. Any person or entity may notify the Board of an alleged conflict of interest or violation of the Code. A recommendation of the Board shall be delivered to the appropriate chief procurement officer and Executive Ethics Commission within 7 calendar days and must be published in the next volume of the Procurement Bulletin. In the event that an alleged conflict of interest or violation of the Code that was not originally disclosed with the bid, offer, or proposal is identified and filed with the Board, the Board shall provide written notice of the alleged conflict of interest or violation to the bidder, offeror, potential contractor, contractor, or subcontractor on that contract. If the alleged conflict of interest or violation is by the subcontractor, written notice shall also be provided to the bidder, offeror, potential contractor, or contractor. The bidder, offeror, potential contractor, contractor, or subcontractor shall have 15 calendar days to provide a written response to the notice, and a hearing before the Board on the alleged conflict of interest or violation shall be held upon request by the bidder, offeror, potential contractor, contractor, or subcontractor. The requested hearing date and time shall be determined by the Board, but in no event shall the hearing occur later than 15 calendar days after the date of the request.

(i) After providing notice and a hearing as required by subsection (h), the Board shall refer any alleged violations of this Code to the Executive Inspector General in addition to or instead of issuing a recommendation to void a contract.

(j) Response. Each State agency shall respond promptly in writing to all inquiries and comments of the Procurement Policy Board.

(Source: P.A. 100-43, eff. 8-9-17.)

(30 ILCS 500/5-7)

Sec. 5-7. Commission on Equity and Inclusion; powers and duties.

(a) The Commission on Equity and Inclusion, as created under the Commission on Equity and Inclusion Act, shall have the powers and duties provided under this Section with respect to this Code. Nothing in this Section shall be construed as overriding the authority and duties of the Procurement Policy Board as provided under Section 5-5. The powers and duties of the Commission as provided under this Section shall be exercised alongside, but independent of, that of the Procurement Policy Board.

(b) The Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall have the authority and responsibility to review, comment upon, and recommend, consistent with this Code, rules and practices governing the procurement, management, control, and disposal of supplies, services, professional or artistic services, construction, and real property and capital improvement leases procured by the State for the purpose of diversity, equity, and inclusion. The Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall also have the authority to recommend a program for professional development and provide opportunities for training in equity and inclusion in procurement practices and policies to chief procurement officers and their staffs in order to ensure that all procurement is conducted in an efficient, professional, and appropriately transparent manner.

(c) Upon a majority vote of its members, the Commission on Equity and Inclusion may review a contract for purposes of equity and inclusion. Upon a three-fifths vote of its members, the Commission may propose equity and inclusion in procurement rules for consideration by chief procurement officers. These proposals of equity and inclusion rules shall be published in each volume of the Procurement Bulletin. Except as otherwise provided by law, the Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall act upon the vote of a majority of its members who have been appointed and are serving.

(d) The Commission on Equity and Inclusion may review, study, and hold public hearings concerning the implementation and administration of this Code in regard to equity and inclusion in procurement. Each chief procurement officer, State purchasing officer, procurement compliance monitor, and State agency shall cooperate with, provide information to, and be responsive to the Commission on Equity and Inclusion in the conduct of its reviews, studies, and hearings for purposes of equity and inclusion in procurement.

(e) Upon a three-fifths vote of its members, the Commission on Equity and Inclusion shall review a proposal, bid, or contract and issue a recommendation to void a contract or reject a proposal or bid based on any violation of this Code in regard to equity and inclusion. A recommendation of the Commission shall be delivered to the appropriate chief procurement officer within 7 calendar days after the proposal due date, bid opening date, or determination of a Code violation and must be published in the next volume of the Procurement Bulletin. The bidder, offeror, potential contractor, contractor, or subcontractor shall have 15 calendar days to provide a written response to the notice. A hearing before the Commission on the violation of the Code in regard to equity and inclusion shall be held upon request by the bidder, offeror, potential contractor, contractor, or subcontractor. The requested hearing date and time shall be determined by the Commission on Equity and Inclusion, but in no event shall the hearing occur later than 15 calendar days after the date of the request. Within 7 days after the hearing, the Commission shall deliver a recommendation to the appropriate chief procurement officer whether to void the contract or reject the proposal or bid.

(Source: P.A. 101-657, eff. 1-1-22; 102-29, eff. 6-25-21.)

(30 ILCS 500/5-23)

Sec. 5-23. Interests of Board members. Members of the Procurement Policy Board employed by or holding an interest in an entity doing business with or attempting to do business with the State of Illinois do not, by their service on the Board, preclude that entity from doing business with or attempting to do business with the State.

(Source: P.A. 90-572, eff. date - See Sec. 99-5.)

(30 ILCS 500/5-25)

Sec. 5-25. Rulemaking authority; agency policy; agency response.

(a) Rulemaking. A chief procurement officer authorized to make procurements under this Code shall have the authority to promulgate rules to carry out that authority. The rulemaking on specific procurement topics mentioned in specific Sections of this Code shall not be construed as prohibiting or limiting rulemaking on other procurement topics.

All rules shall be promulgated in accordance with the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. Contractual provisions, specifications, and procurement descriptions are not rules and are not subject to the Illinois Administrative Procedure Act. All rules other than those promulgated by the Board shall be presented in writing to the Board for review and comment. The Board shall express their opinions and recommendations in writing. The proposed rules and recommendations shall be made available for public review. The rules shall also be approved by the Joint Committee on Administrative Rules.

(b) Policy. Each chief procurement officer shall promptly notify the Procurement Policy Board in writing of any proposed new procurement rule or policy or any proposed change in an existing procurement rule or policy.

(c) Response. Each State agency must respond promptly in writing to all inquiries and comments of the Procurement Policy Board.

(Source: P.A. 98-1076, eff. 1-1-15.)

(30 ILCS 500/5-30)

Sec. 5-30. Proposed contracts; Procurement Policy Board; Commission on Equity and Inclusion.

(a) Except as provided in subsection (c), within 14 calendar days after notice of the awarding or letting of a contract has appeared in the Procurement Bulletin in accordance with subsection (b) of Section 15-25, the Board or the Commission on Equity and Inclusion may request in writing from the contracting agency and the contracting agency shall promptly, but in no event later than 7 calendar days after receipt of the request, provide to the requesting entity, by electronic or other means satisfactory to the requesting entity, documentation in the possession of the contracting agency concerning the proposed contract. Nothing in this subsection is intended to waive or abrogate any privilege or right of confidentiality authorized by law.

(b) No contract subject to this Section may be entered into until the 14-day period described in subsection (a) has expired, unless the contracting agency requests in writing that the Board and the Commission on Equity and Inclusion waive the period and the Board and the Commission on Equity and Inclusion grant the waiver in writing.

(c) This Section does not apply to (i) contracts entered into under this Code for small and emergency procurements as those procurements are defined in Article 20 and (ii) contracts for professional and artistic services that are nonrenewable, one year or less in duration, and have a value of less than $20,000. If requested in writing by the Board or the Commission on Equity and Inclusion, however, the contracting agency must promptly, but in no event later than 10 calendar days after receipt of the request, transmit to the Board or the Commission on Equity and Inclusion a copy of the contract for an emergency procurement and documentation in the possession of the contracting agency concerning the contract.

(Source: P.A. 100-43, eff. 8-9-17; 101-657, eff. 1-1-22.)